The gorgeous chef David Cook first enlightened us about the joys of fried chickpeas. Rather annoyingly, though, only chickpeas in jars produce the really delicious finished article. We don’t know why. This dish very quickly became a Morito summer classic.
For the fried chickpeas
500ml olive, sunflower or rapeseed oil for frying
425g jarred chickpeas (drained weight), rinsed
¼ tsp freshly ground cinnamon
¼ tsp freshly ground coriander seeds
¼ tsp freshly ground cumin seeds
For the chopped salad
1 small cucumber, half peeled in strips, deseeded and diced small
½ red onion, finely chopped
250g cherry tomatoes, quartered
½ bunch of coriander, shredded
2 red or green chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
The juice of 1 lemon
To cook the chickpeas, heat the oil in a large saucepan, making sure it comes no more than halfway up the side.
Dry the chickpeas on kitchen paper to prevent the oil spitting when you add them. When the oil is hot but not smoking – around 180C or when a test chickpea sizzles furiously in it – add the chickpeas and fry until they are puffed up, golden brown and crisp. Remove from the oil with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl lined with kitchen paper to absorb any excess oil.
Sprinkle the spices over the chickpeas, season with salt and toss well. Keep hot. Quickly dress the chopped salad: put the vegetables, coriander and chillies in a bowl, add the olive oil and lemon juice and stir well. Season to taste. Transfer the chopped salad to a dish, spoon the hot chickpeas over the top and serve immediately.
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*Morito by Sam and Sam Clark (Ebury, £25) is published on May 1 and is available to pre-order for £23 plus £1.35 p&p from Telegraph Books (0844-871 1515; books.telegraph.co.uk)